A Weekend in Venice

Today I’m bringing you with me on an adventure around the unique city of Venice. Following our last few days in Paris, Ryan and I jetted off to Italy to explore the city of cannoli and canals.

We used AirBnB again and this time found a private room in the home of a Venetian couple named Emiliano and Anna. (If you find them on AirBnb, don’t hesitate to book a room at their Bed&Breakfast. They are so delightful!) Our room was comfortable and had a beautiful view over an old piazza. It was also centrally located and within walking distance from everything we wanted to do, but in a more residential area versus in the middle of all of the main attractions.

A major perk of staying with locals was that they gave us a list of recommendations for restaurants to try. Venice is such a tourist hub that there are just hundreds of tourist trap restaurants waiting to rip you off. We learned to generally avoid any restaurants that had waiters standing outside trying to get you come in, very large menus with tons of options, or that were bordering major piazzas. Instead, we went to a delicious restaurant called A Le Tole that had house made pasta, an olive and wine bar for a night cap, and a really great lunch spot with heavenly spaghetti that was tucked away at the end of an alley. I don’t know about you but I always secretly feel very proud of myself when I find a wonderful hole in the wall type of place, especially during trips abroad. One afternoon, after deciding that a 16 euro Bellini from the iconic Harry’s bar just wasn’t worth it, we somehow managed to find a hidden gem of a place overlooking the main canal that was jam packed with young locals sipping Aperol Spritzes and eating spaghetti. Three 2 euro spritzes later and I was majorly patting myself on the back.

Honestly, I think the best thing to do in Venice is just wander and get lost. It’s a very confusing place to get around unless you’re familiar with the area but the back alleys and dead ends totally add to the charm.